Tag: behind front lines

We saw already what amazing roles dogs played during the Great War and how many lives they saved. They’ve been helping in the trenches, acted as ratters, scouts, messengers, sentries; they’ve been Red Cross helpers, pulled wheeled machine guns or sleigh with supplies.

Staff Sergeant (Horse Farrier) of the Army Service Corps (ASC) with the Corps pet dogs, Hissy and Jack, in France in 1916. Source DailyMail

Not in the least important was the role dogs’ role as mascots, making the soldiers’ lives more bearable under the severe stress of war, constant battle and the constant death threats.

Canadian wounded soldier and the mascot puppy that put a smile on his face

The size of the dog never mattered.

Through their warm companionship, their
eagerness to please, their courage and loyalty and mostly through their
friendly nature, dogs managed to raise the morale of the troops better than
anything else.

The mascot dog of a regiment at the front listening attentively to a recruiting appeal on the gramophone.

Sergeant “Stubby”

Sgt. Stubby was an American Pit Bull Terrier mix and the most decorated dog of World War One: for discovering, capturing, and alerting the Allies to the presence of a German spy.

Sgt. Stubby , a 9-year-old veteran of the canine species. He has been through the World War as mascot for the 102nd Infantry, 26th Division. Stubby visited the White House to call on President Coolidge. November 1924

He has been through the World War as mascot for the 102nd Infantry, 26th Division. Stubby visited the White House to call on President Coolidge. November 1924

Most decorated and highly-ranked service dog in military history, Sergeant Stubby, a bull terrier.

“Rags”, Mascot & War Hero

Rags found in Paris and fought alongside the
U.S. 1st Infantry division as a mascot and a messenger dog. After arriving on
US soil he became a lieutenant colonel and a celebrity.

Jack, the New Zealand Engineers mascot

Jack was a mascot dog attached to the main
body of the New Zealand Engineers during their service in France during the
First World War. This photograph was taken at Bertrancourt, France, on 6 April
1918 by Henry Armytage Sanders.

Jack, a New Zealand mascot

Gibby, the Canadian’s mascot

“Gibby,” the mascot of a
Canadian regiment, and his C.O.

Gibby, the mascot of a Canadian regiment, and his C.O. The dog had been gassed twice, but still went into action.

A Jack Russell Terrier mascot of the
28th Division

What is special about this image is that the
28th Division keystone is clearly visible on the mascot’s vest, as well as two
overseas chevrons.

Jack Russell mascot of the 28th Division

The 28th Infantry Division is a unit of the
Army National Guard and is the oldest division-sized unit in the armed forces
of the United States. Some of the units of the division can trace their lineage
to Benjamin Franklin’s battalion.

Caesar, a company, 4 Battalion, New Zealand Rifle Brigade NZ mascot

Caesar was a trained Red Cross dog and
helped rescue wounded troops during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

Members of the NZ Rifle Brigade with Caesar. Source Auckland War Memorial Museum

Cesar, a bulldog and his handler, Rifleman Thomas Samuel Tooman, embarked for Egypt in 1016. His handler was assigned to train as an Ambulance Driver and Caesar was trained as a Red Cross Dog. Next they embarked for France, for the Battle of Somme.

Caesar was killed in action on No Man’s Land. He was found alongside a soldier who had also died, his hand resting on Caesar’s head.

Sammy, mascot of the Northumberland
Fusiliers

Sammy, mascot of the Northumberland Fusiliers WW1

Sometimes even enemy’s pets would be adopted after a battle, renamed and loved. And sometimes they got hurt too.

A British war dog receiving first aid.

Some mascots took for the skies.

An RAF fox mascot sitting on a plane with the pilot during World War One. Source BBC

And not all mascots were dogs.

A British soldier “shaking hands” with a kitten in the snow. Neulette, France, 1917

Do return for more posts on the role dogs played during WW2, the Vietnam War, the Korean War, in Israeli Special Forces, during the fall of the Berlin Wall, during the Gulf War, the Iraq War and the War in Afghanistan.

Do check out my book Joyful Trouble, A humorous read about an incredible dog and how he had found his true, yet unexpected calling. It is a book for all ages.

My adult fiction book, Silent Heroes, is a #1 New Release, a contemporary fiction novel, filled with action and emotional twists and turns. “Silent Heroes” has a strong historical and cultural feel of the area when the action takes place, Afghanistan.

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